Ken Dawson

Kenneth Dawson died at home on February 16, 2025. Born in Baltimore, Maryland, on December 19, 1942, to second generation Polish immigrants, Ken was instilled with a strong work ethic and encouraged to value education even though his parents did not complete high school. During a year-long confinement with rheumatic fever at age twelve, Ken learned to play chess and became an ardent sports enthusiast (especially sports statistics). His interest in logic, games, and numbers fueled the passions in his life: teaching mathematics, coaching, and playing fantasy baseball.

Ken was Salutatorian of his graduating class at Mount St. Joseph High School and earned a scholarship to Loyola College. He received a Bachelor of Science degree and began his teaching career in Baltimore City at Patterson High School. Ken later earned a master’s in education while also teaching full time at Roland Park Junior High.

While a student at Loyola, he met his wife, Carol, then a nursing student at nearby Mercy Hospital. They were married in 1965, and in 1971 they moved from Baltimore County to Bel Air, where they raised their three children.

After being instrumental in the opening of Southwestern High School, where he was named the first Department Chair of Mathematics, Ken later accepted a teaching position at Bel Air High School. There he developed a new course, Pursuit of Math, and cultivated close friendships with several fellow teachers at the school. When C. Milton Wright High School opened in 1979, he was hired as the first Chair of the Math Department and was very involved in opening the new school. He spent the remainder of his teaching career at C. Milton Wright, curating an incredibly tight-knit department of faculty who were not only colleagues but close friends for life.

In the early 1980’s, Ken was a catalyst for the purchase of the first desktop computers for students in Harford County Public Schools. In 1984, he was selected as a Maryland Finalist in the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Science and Mathematics Teaching, and in 2005, Ken was inducted into the Harford County Public Schools Educator Hall of Fame.

Though Ken was dedicated to teaching, he loved coaching. Beginning his coaching career in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s at Patterson High School, he continued to coach at Bel Air High School and then at C. Milton Wright, where it was coaching Girls Varsity Soccer that Ken found his calling. From the inaugural year of the program in 1986 through 1994, under Ken’s guidance, the team compiled a 94-27-6 record, including four county titles, three regional championships, and one state final appearance. Ken took pride in the fact that he was involved in the creation of a girls’ soccer program in high schools across Maryland.

Outside of teaching and coaching, Ken passionately pursued his hobbies. With his aptitude for sports statistics, he participated in numerous fantasy baseball leagues with friends, and he enjoyed immensely being the Crabcake League Fantasy Baseball Commissioner, calculating each week’s numbers without the aid of today’s computerized platforms. Ken also had a lifelong interest in Lionel O-Gauge model trains. As a child, his father, true to Baltimore tradition, built their first Christmas garden. Eventually the garden, with houses handmade by fire fighters, adorned with miniature cars and figurines and surrounded by train tracks, in a whimsical holiday display, was erected every Christmas season by Ken and his family. In his retirement, Ken created an elaborate permanent train setup depicting a town and its surrounding area as well as found like-minded enthusiasts, who affectionately referred to themselves as the “Train Gang.”

First at Sacred Heart of Mary Parish and then at St. Margaret Church, Ken and Carol taught high school religious education classes together. For 30 years, Ken served as a reader at St. Margaret Church, taking very seriously his service to the church. He also served on the Parish Council for several years. Later in life he was an ardent member of the Church of the Nativity in Timonium, Maryland.

Ken was exceptionally proud of his children, all of whom graduated from C. Milton Wright and various colleges. But his granddaughters, whom he called the “fab five,” were his total joy. He often teared up sharing their accomplishments with friends.

Ken achieved so much throughout his life. He always considered his accomplishments in the context of service to others, whether through teaching, coaching, or lasting friendships and love of family.

Kenneth was preceded in death by his parents, Philip Dawson and Sophie Sherry Dawson, his sister Jeanette, and his brother Richard.

He is survived by his wife, Carol, his three children, Marcia Dawson, Kenneth Dawson, Jr., and Laura Gore, his five beloved granddaughters, Katie, Jordan, Ellie, Megan, and Leila, and the many friends and colleagues with whom he maintained relationships over the course of his lifetime. He will be dearly missed by all who knew and loved him.

A memorial mass and celebration of life will be held at 10:00am on Thursday, June 5, 2025, at St. Mary Magdalen Mission, 1716 E. Churchville Rd., Bel Air, Maryland 21015

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In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to: 

St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, P.O. Box 50, Memphis, TN 38101

https://www.stjude.org/donate/donate-to-st-jude.html?sc_icid=header-btn-donate-now

 or to Maryland Food Bank, 2200 Halethorpe Farms Rd., Baltimore, MD 21227

https://mdfoodbank.org/ways-to-give/memorial-and-tribute-gifts/